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Thursday, August 8, 2013

How to develop focus and working memory of preschoolers

When it comes to a job well done, we all focus on one’s
ability to focus. Pun aside, in this fast paced world we live today, one’s
ability to focus is highly coveted. Not just us adults but kids need to focus a
lot just to get through their day. With all the learning in the early age and
their brains still developing, it can sometimes be a daunting task for these
little people.

The good news is, there are many fun ways to help kids
develop their working memory which is necessary to focus and eventually master
more advanced brain functions like executive functions. I will elaborate on
executive functions in another blog post. For now, let’s talk about working
memory. Ever tried explaining the rules of the games like duck- duck- goose to
toddlers? They can even repeat the rules after you but once they start playing,
the rules seem to just slip away from them. Four year olds might be able to
follow the rules better than three year olds initially, but after some time it
gets harder for them too. The reason? They simply can’t hold the rules in their
working memory for too long.

‘The napping house’ by Audrey Wood is a fun book to read to
preschoolers while they also work their brain muscles to improve their working
memory. It tells a story of a house where everyone is sleeping. Every time the
author introduces a new character, she repeats the previous ones with an
interesting adjective associated to it. For example, she reminds you about a “cozy
bed with a snoring granny and a dreaming child” and so on before she introduces
the dozing dog.

After I read this book to my three year old a couple of
times, he was trying to say the words with me. He really had to be engaged and
focused to remember what came before the next one in the right backward order.
After remembering a couple, he was struggling. The specific adjectives like
snoring granny or dozing dog was helping him as a memory marker. So with some
difficulty he could remember one or two more. But with a limited working memory
at this development stage, he couldn’t remember them all. Thanks to the
wonderful and suggestive illustrations in the book he had a handy reminder of
what came next. This helped him not to get frustrated and continue on. What a
gem of a book! It not only helps him exercise his working memory but is
interesting enough to keep him engaged. It also provided ways to practice
self-control and persevere while facing a daunting challenge.

You can do the same by singing the Old McDonald song while
repeating all the animals previously mentioned. This will require them to focus
rather than just recite it from memory. This will work well around the age of
three. As they get older and get better at it, keep introducing new animals in
different order every time you sing. That ways they really have to stretch
their working memory and learn to make it better.

Know any other songs or stories that help in promoting
working memory?

About Me

I am a full time employee as a Mom to my 3 year old son and teach hands on engineering and science to kids on weekends and otherwise. I am also required to be a story teller, an arts and craft assistant, cook, event planner, trip advisor, shopping and packing in charge, block builder, problem fixer, and what ever else my 3 year old boss might fancy. This hardly leaves me any time to be an engineer or training & development specialist that I used to be in my past life.